*sb_cali's journal*

[sb_cali]

3/17: Allright! My first journal entry. I'm really glad this is here. If nothing else it'll make me be honest with myself. Of course if anyone wants to read and offer tips or feedback that would be great!

Today was a short workout on my lunch break, but it was a quality one.

*Back*
Lat pull downs (12@70#, & next 3 sets were 10@60#)
Single DB Rows (10@20#, 10@25#, 10@30#)

*Shoulders*
DB Presses (10@20#, 10@25#, 10@30#)
Lat Raises (10@10#, 10@15#, 10@15#)

*Biceps*
Incline DB Curls (10@15#, 10@17.5#, 10@20#)

Eats today are pretty good:

Meal#1 : Oatmeal, cottage cheese mix (cinnamon, glutamine & spenda added)
Meal#2: Tuna salad (capers, artichokes, onion, balsamic & olive oil) tossed on lettuce. And a little oatmeal.
Meal#3: Chicken breast and oatmeal with nuts and cinnamon

Plan for the rest of the day
Meal#4: 6 Egg whites, low-carb tortilla & salsa
Meal#5: More like a snack. Bowl of raw broccoli (my favorite veggie)

I'm also trying to get a gallon of water in, I've been slacking the past few weeks on the water. (Probably 1/2-3/4 gallon).

That's it for now....

[Krissypoo]

Welcome! The ladies are great here, you'll get lots of support. What are your goals and stats?

[sb_cali]

I guess it would help if I posted my stats and goals here...

I'm 39, 5'10", about 170-180, I'm guessing my BF if about 27%-28% only because of how my clothes are fitting and BF testings from the past.

I'd like to get to about 18% BF, (I think) I just imagine that at that point I'd have lost about most of my ... um.... pudge. I tend to have a pretty thick midsection and hold most of my body fat there.

More than concentrating on losing bodyfat, I'd like to just get more consistent with my workouts. Until now I'd been battling a couple of condtions that I think may have also slowed my progress down a bit.
I discovered that I'm hypothyroid and insulin resistant. I'm on meds for both so I feel like I have this fresh new *balanced* start!

Today's (short) workout:

Chest:
Flat bench BB (10@95#, 8@115#, 7@115#)
DB Flyes (10@20#,10@30#,10@30#)

Tri's:
Cable press (10@80#, 10@90#, 10@100#)
Cable press using rope (super slow 25@60#)
Dips (only 4)

It was a short workout, but my tris are spent

Meals today:
#1 - Cottage cheese & raw oats with cinnamon, spenda & glutamine.
#2 - Tuna with balsamic, olive oil on low-carb tortilla. Green beans & yellow peppers.
#3 - Chicken, 1/2 TB Nat PB, Green beans & yellow peppers. (Should of eaten a carb here)
#4 - Egg white, salad & yogurt
#5 - Big ol' bowl of broccoli.

Now that I'm getting my workouts in more often, I'm kinda thinking that I should be eating more. ??

I'll check in later!

[Krissypoo]

Today's (short) workout:

Chest:
Flat bench BB (10@95#, 8@115#, 7@115#)
DB Flyes (10@20#,10@30#,10@30#)

Tri's:
Cable press (10@80#, 10@90#, 10@100#)
Cable press using rope (super slow 25@60#)
Dips (only 4)

You're strong!!! Those are great numbers!!!

Meals today:
#1 - Cottage cheese & raw oats with cinnamon, spenda & glutamine.
#2 - Tuna with balsamic, olive oil on low-carb tortilla. Green beans & yellow peppers.
#3 - Chicken, 1/2 TB Nat PB, Green beans & yellow peppers. (Should of eaten a carb here)
#4 - Egg white, salad & yogurt
#5 - Big ol' bowl of broccoli.

Now that I'm getting my workouts in more often, I'm kinda thinking that I should be eating more. ??

"Meal 5" is not a meal. You need some protein in there. Add a meal 6 with some fats and protein before bed to take you through the night. When do you train? Your meals lok pretty balanced. What about some fruit in the AM or after your workout? Lots of fruits and veggies make you pretty

[sb_cali]

Today's workout was a great 35 minutes of moderate/high cardio! I didn't do intervals or anything like that. But I tried a new elliptical and it was great! I could really feel it in my quads and not in my knees

Thanks for the "strong" compliment. I love lifting weights!

oh and... I realize that a big bowl of brocolli doesn't really make a meal.

My dilemna was that I was trying different things trying to get my morning fasting blood sugars lower. Actually now that I know I was suffering from a "dawn phenomenon" (liver dumping glucose in the early morning hours) I should probably add that protein and fat to my last meal. I'm also taking gluco****e which is helping my blood sugar levels.

My other thing that I was battling was the fact that I hadn't made any progress in fat loss for the past several months. Apparently being insulin resistant wasn't helping anything. Ironically the best thing one can do to combat insulin resistance is to lose weight. Well duh.... talk about a catch-22. I wasn't sure if I should do whatever I could to lose a few pounds and thus improve my blood sugar levels.... or not. (That was my other reason for the low-cal broccoli-fest at night) I was actually skating through on about 1400-1500 kcals/day.

Anyway - my first meal today was some whole-grain cereal and met-rx protein powder (30 grams) and cinnamon.

Right now I'm about to make some egg white/oatmeal pancakes.

Oh - I almost forgot. I usually work out for about 45 min sometime between 12pm and 2pm. My schedule is a little hectic right now juggling my boy's school and weird shift my hubs is working. Weekend workouts are usually done at about 9am or 10am.

That's all for now

[sb_cali]

Yesterday (Sunday) was leg day. I must admit, I'm a bit bummed. I didn't do my usual leg routine and I didn't wake up sore this morning.

Oh well, but this is how it went:

Squats (10@115#, 10@135#, 8@135#, 4@165# - then 16@115#)
Extensions (3x10@70#)
Standing Hamstring curls-alternating (3x10@20#)
Incline seated calf (3x10@240#)
Donkey calf (2x10@300#)

I haven't decided if I'll workout today or not, I haven't been off since last Tuesday.

That's all for now.

[sb_cali]

Okay - While I've read this board for quite a while, I never really checked out all of the journals and pics. Oh my....

I feel so silly in here with my simple goal of being leaner. My gosh, all of you ladies are so fit with great definition. It's a little overwhelming.

I feel like I have such a long road ahead just trying to get to 18-20% BF - yet most of you are already below that.

My first thought was that I was out of my league posting here. On the other hand, where am I going to get such great inspiration and advise?
So I'm going to stick around. But man....looks like I better get my booty in gear

One more thing... my other goal is to compete in a sprint triathalon here in August. So I guess I have 2 goals for now.

[kkapp]

you are NOT out of your league... everyone is welcome... no matter what your goals are!

Some are going for fitness competition... some are doing it for personal reasons... some are getting married soon and want to look awesome walking down the isle (that would be me)... some are trying to bulk up and gain...some are trying to cut and lose... everyone has their own personal reasons and goals.

And if you don't get responses to your posts... keep them up, because many people just read them and don't always respond. We all get ideas from everyone posts.

WELCOME!!!!!

[JumpinJill]

Just wanted to jump in and say getting leaner (ok and stronger upper body) is my only goal too I gained weight over the summer/fall/winter and want to get back in the shape I used to be. While I'd love to have competing as a goal someday, I just dont' have the money to first of all be able to get access to heavier weights than what I have (which is just 25 pound changable dumbells, and other smaller dumbells) let alone the fees it takes to compete let alone the prices i've read it takes for the suits they wear

I guess I kind of feel out of my league a little though too, because so many terms are used and I have no idea what it means. But I don't mind learning, everyone here is so helpful with my questions

[sb_cali]

Whew! I feel much better! But I am still quite in awe of most of your stats.

I didn't work out yesterday - but today's plan is for a nice long cardio. I'm working 6a-3p today so I'll work through lunch and get my cardio in at 2pm.
That way I don't have to deal with showering and changing back into my work clothes.

I've added up what I planned on eating today and it's looking like a pretty light day. (For me anyway)

1552 kcal
158 g. protein
145 g. carbs (37 g. fiber)
36 g. fat

P C F
(41%/37%/21%)

I'm thinking I'll leave todays meals alone and up my cals tomorrow. I've heard of some people having lower calories on cardio days and higher cals on weight-lifting days. Does this sound okay?

[sb_cali]

Oh wow - this week is FLYING by! I can't believe it's Thursday already.

I missed posting yesterday but my workout was a bit different anyway. I went jogging around the neighborhood with my little boys riding their bikes. I was pooped! The cool thing is that we have a pond in our neighborhood and a big beautiful swan has been hanging around. It's really pretty, although he seems a little short tempered with the ducks around.

Today's workout was back and bis. I started out on lat pull downs and did 3 sets of 10 before I realized we got a new lat pull down machine in the next room. I had to try that too! It's a lever machine where you add the weights - kinda like hammerstrength. I'll use that one from now on, it's pretty cool.

Needless to say I did 6 sets of lat pull downs and followed it with 3 sets of one-armed DB rows (30#)

Biceps:
Seated DB curls (3x10@20#)
Standing Hammer (10@10#, 10@12.5#, 10@15#)

Meals today have been clean, my favorite was meal #3 with chopped chicken, artichokes, feta cheese and a little sun-dried tomatos and balsamic vinegar. YUM! (oh and carrots too!)

I've been slacking on the water, so I better start chugging.

I'll check in tomorrow -- see ya.

[JumpinJill]

Sounds like a BEAUTIFUL time jogging! And even cooler you got to share it with your kids!

That meal DOES sound delicious as well, I love feta!
Sounds like you got a great workout in too

[Jennifer-Lynn]

Hi - I thought I would jump in here since I haven't been yet...I did notice that you aren't having a PWO shake? Is that correct? I would highly recommend it. Otherwise with a few other tweaks your diet looks very healthy and balanced.

[sb_cali]

Thanks for the responses....

About the PWO - I just wasnt sure if/how I should work it into my menu. The last time I had a shake my blood sugar jumped too high. I'm not sure if it was the whey protein powder or what, but it kinda scared me. All I remember about PWO is that they are heavier on the simple carbs for fast glucose up-take, so I don't know if that would be good for me or not. (Just call me confused )

My other thing is that if it's true that one can only pick one at a time (lose fat vs. gain muscle) I really want to lean down. Anything special that I should do nutrition-wise for that?

Today's workout was 40 min of moderate cardio. My bi's and back are sore from yesterday! (yippee) So tomorrow I'm thinking of a push workout.

Eats today have been pretty clean. Eggs/potato for breakfast. (It was a "work" breakfast and I felt a little silly about whipping my cold chicken breast out of my purse, so I settled for the eggs.)

Meal#2: Cottage Cheese & Oatmeal w/a little fiber one.
Meal#3: about 2 oz chicken breast and a balance bar (I know - not the best choice, but I didn't plan well today)

Meal#4: trying JumpinJill's cottage cheese enchiladas!
Meal#5: Broccoli & protein shake.

Can't forget my water!
Please let me know what tweaks and tips you've got for me!

Thanks!

[sb_cali]

It's Sat morning and a beautiful day!

I'm just finishing up my cottage cheese/oatmeal mix and then a quick dash to the store for a few things. I figure giving myself 30-40 minutes after eating is a good amount of time before working out. yah?

Anyway - then I'll take the boys to the YMCA for my workout. They play in the kids gym and I'll do that push workout that I didn't do yesterday. For some reason I ended up doing cardio yesterday and I don't know why I didn't do my planned workout.
After that I took the boys to the playground and shot some baskets. I love basketball, not to be confused with my being actually any *good* at basketball. heh-heh.

Hopefully this afternoon we can go swimming or something outdoors again. It's finally sunny here in So.Cal. (yippee )

[sb_cali]

Okay - I just had the greatest, exhausting, workout! I'm all wobbly!

Is this weird or does this happen to anyone else before their workout...? I get nervous. It's like I'm going to talk in front of a crowd, I actually get butterflies in my stomach. It usually only happens on leg day, but it's kinda odd.

I started out on the leg press and completed 4 sets of 10@450#. I took it nice and slow and got a good range of motion in there. Then I noticed that someone conveniently left a barbell on the floor with the 25#s on it so I did some SLDL's. 2 sets with 95# and 1 set with 115#.

Then squats... this is my favorite. (it's more of a love/hate thing actually).
3 sets of 10... (a$$ to calves) @115#.
At this point I'm sweating, breathing hard and very grateful that the weight room is crowded. There's just something about finishing up a set of squats when you want to die (or throw-up) and the "boyz" are watching to see if you can hack it. I'll do anything to save face so I finished up and tried really hard to walk gracefully out to the drinking fountain. My legs were numb however.... I did a few quick, light sets of leg extensions and calf presses and called it a day. I was definitely done.

So now I'm eating my apple and chicken breast.

Earlier I had:
#1 - LF Cottage Cheese & Oatmeal
#2 - Chicken breast, asparagus and LC Tortilla
#3 - (eating apple and chick. breast now)
#4 - Fish tacos
#5 - protein shake & broccoli

Yesterday I didn't work out - it was Easter so we hung out at the house and managed to avoid all easter candy except for one small Hershey's dark miniature. Whew!

Anyway - it was a great day today! Tomorrow I'll do cardio.

[Krissypoo]

I started out on the leg press and completed 4 sets of 10@450#. I took it nice and slow and got a good range of motion in there. Then I noticed that someone conveniently left a barbell on the floor with the 25#s on it so I did some SLDL's. 2 sets with 95# and 1 set with 115#.

Then squats... this is my favorite. (it's more of a love/hate thing actually).
3 sets of 10... (a$$ to calves) @115#.

WOW!!! Great workout girl!!!! 450 on the leg press. WHEW!

What did your macros look like today?

[sb_cali]

Hi there,

Well my plan disintegrated a bit last night when we actually got to the mexican food restaurant.
I can usually be good and avoid the chips and then order the healthy fish tacos. Darn it. We got there and I was just so darn hungry - I ate chips. Not a whole basket or anything like that, but more than 10-12. (sigh)

I then ordered the tri-tip burrito, which in itself isn't that bad. no sauce, no cheese, no rice or beans. Just tortilla, steak, lettuce, tomato and a little bit of avocado. I got home and felt guilty (& full) so I skipped my last meal.

I just added up my totals and my protein is too low and the fat was too high. All in all it was about:

1546 kcal
31% protein (120 grams)
37% carbs (142 grams)
32% fat (55 grams)

I'll check in later with todays stats as soon as I get my cardio done

WannaBe: Thanks for the compliments on the leg press! Did I read your journal right where you say you do walking lunges with 45's in each hand?!? Wow - that's great!! and I thought I was doing good with the 25's.... LOL

[arose70]

Hi sb cali, we have very similar stats, I'm 6 feet and right now about 178. I think I'm about 27-28% bf now and I too want to get down to 18-20%! I can't even touch the weights you are doing though-----soooooo impressive. I did walking lunges with 20s today though which was pretty good for me :P The weight you put up is very inspirational and I am going to keep up with your journal...let me know what works for you and when you start to see some major changes! My biggest problem areas are my butt and hips so we probably carry our weight similarly. A good thing though is that tall girls can really weigh a lot but look a lot smaller...whenever I tell someone my weight they are shocked! Keep us posted on your progress!

[sb_cali]

Hi arose70!
Thanks for jumping in! First off, I gotta tell you that I think it's so cool you're 6' tall! WOW. (I wouldn't mind being a couple of inches taller) I was reading your journal too and am impressed with your playing basketball. I'm a "wannabe" baller, but after watching some of the pickup games at the Y, I know I'd get creamed. LOL (I'm not really what you'd call...um... "good")

My cardio workout yesterday was a 15min on the bike and 20 min on the elliptical. My plan was to go for higher intensity, but when I changed into my workout clothes I realized I'd forgotten my sport bra. Dang. I hate it when that happens... In a moment of weakness I almost thought about skipping my workout (duh) but then realized how stupid that sounded and decided to do a no-impact workout and ride the bike. Cardio ended up being a good one after all AND I had full-coverage-shaping the whole time too

My other problem (and let me tell you how odd this is for me) is that I only came up with 1454 calories yesterday. I just haven't been that hungry lately and maybe it's the new med I started a few weeks ago, but this is highly unusual for me. I'm also getting a lot more sleep than I used to and going to bed earlier so I'm not eating as much at night.

Yesterday's breakdown was

kcal: 1454
protein: 126
carbs: 126
(fiber: 37)
fat: 49

35% - 35% - 30%

On the other hand, since it was a cardio day, maybe it was okay that my cals were on the low end.

[arose70]

Hi again sb cali, that is so funny about your sports bra-I hate it when that stuff happens! Actually, yesterday I was changing in a bathroom stall at work to go to the gym and dropped one of my socks in the toilet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I couldn't believe it! I picked it out before it got all wet and then it went right into the trash...so I worked out with only one sock! It wasn't noticeable though because I wear those little ones but still, my left foot kinda felt funny!

[sb_cali]

I'm back - finished up a back/shoulder workout late this afternoon. I think it could have been longer, but I only had about 40 minutes to work out and get to the school to pick up my son.

I started with lat pull downs, then reverse grip pull downs and then one-arm DB rows. I moved on to the shoulder press and lat raises. Did a few verticle knee raises and quickly left. It was like a speed-workout and I realize I don't really like it when I rush it like that.

Food today has been super clean so far and lots of water. It's blazin' hot here today for some reason, but I love it!

Oh and Arose... love the sock in the toilet story Nothing like changing in a small bathroom stall at work, is there? I haven't dropped a sock in the toilet yet, but my boys have thrown many in the toilet at home while stripping down for bath-time. LOL.

[Jennifer-Lynn]

Sb - Hi!

How are you feeling on the food ratios you are eating? Are you hungry at all during the day or the middle of the night? I would like to see your protein a little higher and a PWO shake right after (within 30 minutes) of your cardio or weight workout - can you do that? I buy Isopure which is an isolate (it doesn't have any carbs, sugars etc...) For 1 scoop it is 100 cals/25grms. protein...I usually add oats and berries or you can add ff/sf yogurt or skim milk and a banana...what do you think? I really think you need a good recovery shake....btw, what kind did you have that made you all jittery?

Keep up the solid workouts - your #'s are great!

[sb_cali]

Sb - Hi!

How are you feeling on the food ratios you are eating? Are you hungry at all during the day or the middle of the night? I would like to see your protein a little higher and a PWO shake right after (within 30 minutes) of your cardio or weight workout - can you do that? I buy Isopure which is an isolate (it doesn't have any carbs, sugars etc...) For 1 scoop it is 100 cals/25grms. protein...I usually add oats and berries or you can add ff/sf yogurt or skim milk and a banana...what do you think? I really think you need a good recovery shake....btw, what kind did you have that made you all jittery?

Keep up the solid workouts - your #'s are great!

Hi Jennifer-Lynn,

I'm feeling okay about my food ratios. I'm surprised at how I'm not really hungry at all lately. I've been averaging about 1500 calories this past week.
(35%,35%,30%) BUT I usually have a cheat-meal on the weekend, although it's not too wild anymore because I'm avoiding sugar. (Kinda takes the fun out of the cheat )

I think the protein powder I used was V-60 (Labrada) and I can't remember what I added to it. I just know that when I went to check my blood glucose an hour later it was way over 140 (and it should be less than that). Maybe if I added oats or strawberries it would be better. (In fact that sounds really good right now).

I remember reading something about whey being digested quicker than a complex or something... I'll check it out.

I've heard lots of good things about Isopure, I may see if our supplement store carries it.

And... what *should* my ratios look like? Sometimes they're 40/40/20 too...

Thanks for the help!

[sb_cali]

Hey - it's Friday and it's another gorgeous day here! I'm also trying to pretend I'm not coming down with a cold. I figured if I just ignored it and tried to be optimistic, it would go away... (fingers crossed).

I'm upping the water today just in case.

Yesterday I didn't get a workout in. I was out of town and by the time I got back I was not feeling so great. I kept my food clean and tried to get some good sleep last night.

I did just add up yesterday's meals and I'm really surprised it's as low as it is. I keep thinking I'm eating more than I am. I'm going to shoot for 1700 calories today. Does that sound okay?
Yesterday's totals:
1336 kcal (bad... I know)
33% protein
36% carbs (34 g. fiber)
31% fat

Wednesdays calories were about 1600 with the same ratios, by the way.

I'm going to pop over to the nutrition store to look for protein powder as soon as I can sneak a break in. Then I'm going to try for 45 min of moderate cardio later today.

[sb_cali]

I'm headed over to the gym in about 15 min. I don't mean to sound like I'm bragging (really), but I'm so proud of myself this week for sticking to my plans. I've worked out and ate clean and didn't allow myself any excuses. Even though one day I forgot my sports bra Honestly, I'm really good at finding reasons to delay or change a workout sometimes. I finally feel like I'm making some progress! (Thank goodness for bb.com! It's kept me honest and accountable)

Yesterday I managed to get up to roughly 1650 calories.

Well - I'm off to my workout. 45 min of cardio today - yesterday was biceps and a short cardio (30 min). Tomorrow I'll work chest/tri's.

Check ya later!

[sb_cali]

What a great break! My family and I just spent a fun, relaxing vacation going on a baja cruise! It was SO nice to just get away from TV, computers and work. We played in the pool, went walking around the different ports, didn't eat too much and spent some time in the ship's gym! Not too shabby.

The best part for me and my 6 year old was signing him up to climb the rock wall. They have an easy climb for the little ones and I was so proud! He almost made it to the top and the youngest one out there! My initial thought was I'd just be there for him, but when the rock staff asked me if I was going to climb and said yes! (I've never done it before and thought it sure would suck to come back home and then regret saying no). I was afraid of falling on my butt, but nothing ventured..... It was GREAT! I was nervous, but I loved it! It made me feel especially good when the girl working the ropes remarked that I had a great climb and had impressive strength. I think I must have smiled the whole rest of the day. It was a special time too because I got to share it with my little boy.


And so.... I'm back now and ready for a great leg workout today!

I'll check in later when I've added up my calories and finished my workout.

[sb_cali]

I just finished with my leg workout and at first I wasn't sure I had exhausted my legs, but an hour later now and I'm thinking I did.

Squats: 3 sets of 8@115#, 1 set of 8@135#, 1 set of 5@165#, then dropped back down to 115# and did 2 sets of super-slow, super-low of 12 reps.

Leg extensions: 3 sets of 10@80#

Seated Hammies: 3 sets of 10@100#

Seated calf raises 2 sets of 15 @#60

Then some hanging knee raises and dips.

I went out and bought some Isopure today to bump up my protein intake a bit. So I just finished drinking up my PWO shake. So far it looks like I'll hit about 1635 calories today. (almost 170 grams of protein... yah?)

I've been slacking on the water, so I better get going on that.

Peace

[sb_cali]

Okay - It's Wednesday morning.... 2 days after my leg workout and lemme tell ya. I'm sore and loving it

Yesterday was an off day and so I just made sure my eating was clean. I did manage to hit 1700 calories so I was pretty pleased about that. I'm not sure the ratios were the best. They ended up being about 33%/33%/33%.

Today my plan for meals is:

1: Oatmeal - Cottage Cheese mix (I'm can't believe I'm not burned out on this yet)
2: Tuna (w/ a little dressing) & sweet potato
3: Chicken breast & apple and 1 TB natty PB
4: Low carb tortilla, egg whites & chickpeas w/salsa
5: Protein shake & broccoli

I usually like to have more veggies, but I'm all out - except for my yummy broccoli.

Cardio is the plan for my workout today - and maybe some ab work at home later tonight

[shortsteph]

Hey,

I enjoyed reading your journal.

I also have 2 boys 6&8...

I love climbing the rock wall.. My oldest son loves it too.. I think the first time he climbed he was about 6... so cool!!

I cant wait till they build one here locally... there is one about an hour away we have been too!

Im impressed with what you can lift.

Keep up the good work!!